California Wonder 300 TMR Pepper Seeds

California Wonder 300 TMR pepper seeds grow into upright, erect plants reaching 25–30 in, bearing green fruit about 4.3 × 3.9 in (110 × 100 mm). Heat category: Sweet. It is especially suited to stuffed peppers, fresh green bells, ripe red bells, salads, roasting, grilling, freezing, and seed saving. Maturity is 70-79 Days.

About California Wonder 300 TMR

California Wonder 300 TMR is a sweet pepper grown as Capsicum annuum L. Plants have an upright, erect habit and reach 25–30 in; support is listed as stake. The principal mature or market color is Green, with fruit described as about 4.3 × 3.9 in (110 × 100 mm). Reproductive classification: Open-Pollinated (OP). Maturity: 70-79 Days. Names associated with this variety include California Wonder 300 TMR Pepper Seeds | Sweet Bell Pepper.

• Scientific name:Capsicum annuum L.
• Life cycle:Annual
• Planting season:Spring
• Growth habit:Upright/Erect
• Plant height:25–30 in
• Sunlight:Full sun
• Seed depth:1/4 in
• Germination:7–14 Days at 75–90 °F
• Spacing:18 in between plants; 24 in between rows
• Soil:Loamy; pH 6.0–6.5
• Water:Moderate
• Support:Stake
• Reproductive type:Open-Pollinated (OP)
• Fruit:Green; About 4.3 × 3.9 in (110 × 100 mm)
• Heat:Sweet; 0 SHU

History and seedkeeping context

California Wonder 300 TMR belongs to the long-running California Wonder family of blocky sweet bell peppers, but the 300 TMR name identifies a disease-resistant selection rather than every pepper sold as California Wonder. North American cultivar records list California Wonder 300 as a thick-walled California Wonder type released in the mid-1960s, while California Wonder 300 TMR appears in a later 1999 record. The 300 TMR cultivar description documents glossy green fruit that turns red at maturity, smooth blocky shape, mostly four lobes, thick walls, and average dimensions near 110 by 100 millimeters, or about 4.3 by 3.9 inches.

TMR should be understood as a resistance trait, not immunity to every mosaic virus, bacterial disease, or environmental disorder. This is a sweet Capsicum annuum bell pepper with no capsaicin heat. Green and red are two harvest stages of the same fruit, not separate varieties.

The available sources do not establish a named person’s tribal identity. A TMV-resistant selection in the California Wonder bell pepper family. The 1999 cultivar record describes glossy, thick-walled, mostly four-lobed 110 by 100 mm fruit, 72-day harvest, and green-to-red maturity.

Fruit, flavor, and kitchen use

Harvest full-sized glossy green bells for crisp fresh eating, salads, sandwiches, stuffing, grilling, roasting, freezing, and cooking. Leave selected fruit on the plant until fully red for a sweeter ripe flavor and mature seed. The blocky, mostly four-lobed shape and thick walls make the cultivar especially useful for stuffed peppers. Fruit may be harvested green near the stated maturity point, while fully red bells need additional time. Avoid overloading young plants; removing misshapen early fruit can help the plant establish before carrying a full crop. California Wonder 300 TMR is especially useful for stuffed peppers, fresh green bells, ripe red bells, salads, roasting, grilling, freezing, and seed saving. Flavor and eating quality are described as crisp sweet bell flavor when green, becoming sweeter and fuller as fruit ripens red. Heat classification: Sweet; listed range: 0 SHU. Pungency can shift with genetics, weather, water stress, and ripeness.

How to grow California Wonder 300 TMR

Start California Wonder 300 TMR indoors about 8 to 10 weeks before the last expected frost. Sow 1/4 in deep in a warm, evenly moist seed-starting mix; expect 7–14 Days near 75–90 °F. Provide strong light as soon as seedlings emerge, pot up before roots become crowded, and harden plants gradually before transplanting after nights are reliably warm.

Plant in full sun with loamy soil near pH 6.0–6.5. Space plants 18 in apart and rows 24 in apart. Maintain moderate moisture, mulch after the soil warms, and avoid excessive nitrogen. Install stake early where the upright, erect plant or fruit load warrants it. Mature height is 25–30 in.

Season care

• Warmth matters most during germination; keep California Wonder 300 TMR seed warm without leaving the medium saturated. • Harden seedlings gradually and wait for warm nights before transplanting, because cold soil and wind can stall peppers for weeks. • Install stake before branches carry a heavy crop, and keep moisture even while fruit is setting. • Harvest at the color stage suited to the recipe, but leave fruit fully mature on selected plants when saving seed. • Use 70-79 Days as a planning range rather than a guaranteed calendar date; weather and transplant stress can shift first harvest.

Harvest and maturity

70-79 Days from transplant to first representative harvest; the same value is used in every description. Peppers can often be used at an immature green or transitional color, but fully ripe color is required for mature seed.

Saving seed

Peppers are largely self-pollinating but insect movement can produce crosses. To save California Wonder 300 TMR true to type, grow several healthy representative plants, isolate them from compatible pepper varieties or use blossom bags or cages, and remove clear off-types before flowering. Allow selected fruit to reach full biological color, handle hot fruit with gloves, remove the seed, dry it in a thin labeled layer until fully hard and dry, then store it cool, dark, and dry. Keep the harvest year, source, isolation method, and selection notes with the lot.

Common questions